Vue

From About.com: In its second year with GM’s mild hybrid drivetrain option, the Vue gets a complete refresh for 2008. Its new curved and sculpted look, a severe departure from old, hints at European inspiration and upscale flavor. The new Vue Green Line is decently equipped in standard trim as was our tester, with enough amenities to make a long trip comfortable--but without whiz bang.

From OttawaCitizen.com: Lost in the explosion that has been Saturn's model proliferation in the last 24 months, I took little notice of the new Vue compact sport-utility. Though I was quite enamored of the previous generation for its bargain price and excellent, supplied-by-Honda powertrain, I was far more seduced by the Sky roadster, Aura sedan and, especially, the Astra subcompact.

From the Orlando Sentinel: Let's get this out of the way first: Yes, the sensible, comparatively simple Saturn Vue Green Line is a hybrid, but it does not get the astronomical fuel economy that Toyota Prius drivers crow about. But those of us who don't much care for the Prius' driving characteristics might be willing to sacrifice mileage for some of the Vue Green Line's other attributes, such as interior room and luggage capacity.

From ImSaturn.com: A couple of weeks ago, several other engineers and I spent a full day driving some Vue 2 Mode hybrid development vehicles on one of our final development rides throughout southeast Michigan. We had a good mix of city and highway driving during the day.

Virtually peruse through this beautifully produced multi-page Saturn full-line ad published by Automobile magazine in their April '08 issue. Look for the fold-out and removable poster-sized picture of a bright red 2008 Saturn Astra 3-door XR inside the last page.

Close your eyes, if you will, and image the year is 2011. You're in the market for a new car. You work 15 miles from home, and you need vehicle that has enough space to not only haul around your family, but has room leftover for the inevitable weekend trips to Lowes and Home Depot. Gas prices have skyrocketed and are hovering around a record $6.29 per gallon.

Cars.com recently released its list of the top 10 2008 model year hybrid vehicles on the market. The website says it hopes ratings and rankings methodology will help consumers get a clear understanding of these vehicles' fuel-efficiency and price differences compared to their non-hybrid counterparts.

To date Saturn's hybrid vehicles have been of the "mild" variety, but that's going to change in the next few months as the automaker prepares to launch a second Green Line Vue model with a hybrid system designed to leapfrog its competition.

As another key element in its overall global strategy to improve fuel economy and reduce oil consumption and CO2 emissions, General Motors Chairman Rick Wagoner announced yesterday that GM will introduce a second-generation version of the GM Hybrid System with a new, more powerful lithium-ion battery.

TheCarConnection reports that troubled battery maker Cobasys threatens to continue to limit the availability of Saturn and General Motors hybrid vehicles. The 2008 Saturn Vue and Aura Green Line hybrids, as well as the Chevrolet Malibu hybrid, use Cobasys' nickel-metal-hydride batteries. The company is also one GM's key suppliers for its new 2-mode hybrid models.

Random Article from the SaturnFans.com Archives

Saturn announced today at the North American International Auto Show that production will may begin as soon as 2010 on a plug-in hybrid electric version of the Saturn Vue Green Line, expected to be the first regular production plug-in hybrid electric vehicle. Depending on a consumer's drive cycle, the Vue plug-in hybrid will be the most fuel-efficient vehicle offered by a major automaker.